The #BLBestOf3 series continues and today we are looking at Bollywood’s overall performance in the first quarter of 2018. Like every year, the trade was hopeful of a good year and their dream seems to be coming true. We saw several interesting films release this year and not only have they impressed the audience, but also raked in a large amount of money at the box office. In fact, Bollywood has witnessed the best first quarter in a long tim. And trade analyst Taran Adarsh also agrees with us, as he mentioned on Twitter, “Unlike previous years, the first quarter of 2018 has brought hope, cheer and optimism. #Padmaavat, #PadMan, #SonuKeTituKiSweety, #Raid and #Hichki have brought our smiles back. Well begun indeed!”

If you looks at the first three months, we’ve had 4 hundred crore films (Padmaavat, Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Raid, Baaghi 2), 6 hits (Padmaavat, Padman, Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Raid, Hichki, Baaghi 2) and 1 blockbuster (Padmaavat) already. In fact, we’ve already had a Rs 300 crore film (Padmaavat) in the first quarter, while in 2017 we had just one in the whole year, that too it came in the last quarter of the year (Tiger Zinda Hai). Quite clearly, Bollywood has taken a phenomenal start in the first quarter of 2018. From one Tiger (Zinda Hai) to another Tiger (Shroff) – the first three months have been fantastic for Bollywood! And to give you a better idea, here’s a brief analysis of Bollywood’s performance in the first quarter of 2018 and the trends we witnessed!

# Blockbuster beginning
The box office run of Salman Khan’s Tiger Zinda Hai spilled into the first quarter of 2018 and the film looked unstoppable as it broke records left, right and centre. It earned Rs 339.16 crore at the box office, before Ranveer Singh – Deepika Padukone – Shahid Kapoor’s Padmaavat took over. The period drama ruled the box office for weeks to come and ended up raking in Rs 302.04 crore, giving Bollywood the best January start till date. (ALSO READ – #BLBestof3: Padmaavat, PadMan, Pari, Hichki, Raid – Which is your favourite movie from the first quarter of 2018?)

 # Content continues to rule
After Padmaavat, we saw several interesting films hit the screens, but this year again, the ones with good content and execution won hearts at the theatres. This enabled them to earn the big bucks and in turn, become hits. Akshay Kumar’s Padman, Ajay Devgn’s Raid and Rani Mukerji’s Hichki impressed one and all. The star factor paired with interesting story lines, good conent and execution enabled them to earn huge amounts of money. However, Kartik Aaryan’s Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety was the biggest surprise of the lot. No one expected the film to performily extraordinarly well at the box office, but people loved it, so much so that it went on to earn Rs 100 crore.

# There is no stopping Sequels
After sequels like Judwaa 2, Golmaal Again, Fukrey Returns and Tiger Zinda Hai ruled the box office last year, Baaghi 2 started off from where they left off. The Tiger Shroff starrer not only became the highest opener of 2018, but also the second highest grosser of the year, that to within a week. And after breaking several records at the box office, Baaghi 2 proved once again that there is no stopping sequels.

# Not even a single Khan film, but Bollywood still takes the best start in 5 years
The first quarter of 2018 proved once again that the audience has shifted its focus from superstar based films to content driven films. If you give them a decent film with a good story, they will surely go watch it. In fact, even without a single Khan film in the first three months, Bollywood has taken the best start in the past 5 years. Achieving 4 hundred crore films, 6 hits and 1 blockbuster in the first quarter already and raking in more than Rs 900 crore in just 3 months, is huge! Yes, a Khan film can still change the game and give you the biggest grosser of the year, however, now we can say that a couple of good films can also give you a fantastic quarter! (ALSO READ – #BLBestOf3: Shahid Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Saif Ali Khan – who stunned you with their breakthrough performance in the first three months of 2018?)

 So that was our analysis of Bollywood’s performance and the trends we saw in the first quarter of 2018! Anyway, what did you think of the movies that released in the first quarter and the money it made? Share with us your thoughts in the comments section below! Also stay tuned to BollywoodLife as we get you all the dope and updates from B-town right here.